The present invention relates generally to data recording systems and particularly to a system for recording data on an optical disk in a spiral format of tracks.
Conventional recording of data on an optical disk entails the use of concentric tracks. Exemplary in the art, are the systems provided in the following U.S. patents, which are specifically incorporated by reference:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,472,747 issued to D. Schwartz on Sept. 18, 1984; PA0 U.S. Pat. No. 4,473,850 issued to H. Foerster et al on Sept. 25, 1984; PA0 U.S. Pat. No. 4,519,008 issued to T. Takenouchi et al on May 21, 1985; PA0 U.S. Pat. No. 4,497,050 issued to T. Beetstra on Jan. 29, 1985; PA0 U.S. Pat. No. 4,164,763 issued to M. Briccetti et al on Aug. 14, 1979; PA0 U.S. Pat. No. 4,211,997 issued to P. Rudnick et al on July 8, 1980; and PA0 U.S. Pat. No. 4,512,006 issued to T. Murakami et al on Apr. 16, 1985.
The Beetstra, Briccetti and Rudnick references disclose recording systems for recording information in digital format on a disk. Schwartz discloses a microcomputer system for converting an analog signal into digital form for storing in digital form a highly condensed code.
Foerster discloses an apparatus for recording digitally coded television signals on a recording medium. The recording process includes the use of buffer stores operating in a first-in first-out (FIFO) mode.
The Takenouchi reference discloses an apparatus for recording visual information. This apparatus includes a monitor display.
The use of concentric tracks is common in the recording of data on disks, such as the magnetic hard disks. The concentric track format is replete with inherent gaps which are spread throughout the recorded data stream. These gaps are manifested, not in lost data, but lost time which is present in the form of a track seek time, as the system attempts to store or retrieve a continuous data stream.
There presently exists the need to store and retrieve instrumentation data on hard disks without a track seek time. The present invention is intended to satisfy that need.